Monday, March 30, 2009

This photo has not been touched up at all. Something in the camera created the lucious blue background you see here. I find it interesting that these colors are complimentary colors--total opposites on the color wheel.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

I was driving on a rugged dirt road near Sheridan, where the gentle swell of the Coastal mountains begin. It is so beautiful out there, one could never capture it with a camera. I was, however able to capture these rusty teeth, abandoned at the corner of a vast field filled with yellow flowers.

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Quite unexpectedly, my youngest daughter came running downstairs just now, to press something small into my fingers. She grinned and said, "I thought you'd like this one, Mom!" When I saw what it was I smiled, and felt honored.

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And so, I dedicate this unusual gourmet heart to all those marvelous Daughters, Sisters, Moms, and Friends who bring such unexpected joy into our lives.

This is a photo of my garden, taken at night out the back door, during the big snowstorm. It was so beautiful. I am always in awe of the snow's mysterious ability to change everything with it's magical blanket of beauty.

As I wrote to a dear friend this week, " There’s something about snowflakes. The beauty of their way through the air. How they cover the world and make everything beautiful--somehow falling snow is peaceful. If one is inside next to a roaring fireplace, a windy snowstorm brings a sense of peace with it. "

But now I think I know why snow is so magical. If you look closely, you'll see there's a snow faery laughing through the snowflakes.

Friday, March 27, 2009

A few miles out of town you become aware you are in the heart of Oregon wine country. There are ornate gates, and elegant drives leading to gorgeous inns with spacious gracious rooms. The gentle swelling hills are covered with well-tended grape vines, some of which, as you can see from my photo, have been there for a very long time.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

On one of our wonderful walks--cameras in tow--my sister Clytie and I were graced with a surprise snowstorm. Whenever I am feeling stressed, or sad, I think of our lovely times together. I am so grateful for my precious sister..Clytie's blog Random Heartshttp://clytie-randomhearts.blogspot.com/ has photos of hearts she's found in the most unlikely places. Visit her blog and you will be refreshed and encouraged..When I clicked this photo I was leaning out of an abandoned cabin window to capture the brilliance of red leaves against the falling snow. You're right, Sissy--it is amazing how different our photos of red leaves turned out! I think I like yours best! (grin)

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

At the Baskett Slough Bird Sanctuary things get busy as the sun sets. It is spectacular to watch millions birds of flocking layer upon layer, all looking for places to settle for the night. I was stunned by the sheer number and variety of them..One could wax poetical over the incredible beauty of ribbons of birds pressed against those vivid pink and purple skies. They massed overhead like a living archway. I was filled with awe. What I've captured here is only a tiny savor of what that real moment was like.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

This is a photo I snapped a few years ago. There's something so lovely and peaceful about a water lily. The fragrance of the lilies can be magical on a soft warm summer evening. This sweet white flower with its golden heart grew from a start Dad gave to me. The pond with its spry goldfish and lovely flowerings is the center of my garden.

Monday, March 23, 2009

This little beauty barred my way as I walked upon a path in the Redwood National Forest. The shroom bravely defied not only the incredible strength and power in the size of the redwood trees, but the rude shock of human boots. I believe if asked the Shroom would say it finds its dangerous life in the pathway to be delightful.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

This is a little Chickadee who seemed quite intrigued that a human might sound so much like a bird. If she were a person, she'd be leaning from a doorway, hands on hips, elbows akimbo, head tilted to one side, face graced with a quizzical grin. "Um, did you say something?"

Saturday, March 21, 2009

I have not been feeling very well the past two days. In my fragile state this morning it seems a bit of color would be appropriate. Hence this photo of last Fall's leaves. I found them near the Independence Bridge.

I love every season. Spring with it's tender green leaves and blooms, Summer with its warmth and brilliance, Winter with its stark beauty, and then Fall. Fall is harvest, nostalgia and gorgeous color--a last hurrah before the cold.

I came upon this photo today, and it's colorful aspect charmed my eyes, and so I share it with you.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Here she is, curled up in my husband's pants. Alan had to change clothes for an appointment. We laughed and laughed when we discovered Crickette's choice of a place to nap. She was so cute, and seemed so mischievous (look at her face), I took her picture.

This pretty little kitty adores my husband. She sits on the back of the couch and grooms his hair. She trips him in the kitchen, sits on his computer and whenever she can she sleeps on his clothing. She tolerates me with a kitty giggle and grin, but the true love of her life is Alan.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

I came across these odd looking pods while driving along a country road. My son, well used to the odd behavior of his mother when it comes to flowers, clouds and other interesting diversions, was quite tolerant as I slammed to a stop in the gravel, to leap from the car, camera in hand, to take a picture of this wonderful oddity.

I have since discovered these pods unfold into white star-shaped blossoms commonly called "Cow flowers."

Personally I think they resemble those pods from the Body Snatcher Movie.

Sissy and I are kindred spirits. We have one heart when it comes to photography (and a lot of other stuff, too). We are members of a mutual admiration society. Please visit both of her websites. Clytie is a natural born photographer who's work is instinctively gorgeous, often with interesting perspectives. Coupled with her strange and wonderful sense of humor--I look forward to perusing her blogspot each and every day.

Last Monday I went on a most wonderful walk with my younger sister Clytie. We tromped, cameras in hand, through the empty ruins of a nearby mega church (with permission, of course).

It is amazing, that in the presence of so much vandalism and ruin, one can find such beauty. The snow began to fall, touching our world with its special magic. Snow has the ability to transform ordinary things into extraordinary objects. It enhances beauty into absolute splendidness. (I know there's no such word--but in this case, only a made-up word fits!) (grin)

Here you see Lavender on Ice--if you look close enough I believe you can actually see the intricate shapes of the snowflakes.

Friday, March 13, 2009

These are the gorgeous flowers I remember from childhood. We lived so close to my Grandmother, there was a path worn smooth across the field to her house. My brothers and sisters and I spent many a happy day playing in her yard near the porch where these flowers twined up the porch supports to lavish the eye with their beauty.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

One bright spring morning, I was astonished by a rainbow in a form I'd never witnessed before. Its bright colors, rather than curving into a bow, actually textured the air itself. I pulled over and tried to capture what I saw. Here you see only a fraction of the beauty of that moment.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

This is one of the castles my sister Clytie and I discovered on one of our long tromps through the mysterious forest. I have no doubt but that in silvery starlight, one would find the faery folk dancing upon the mosses. There would be light streaming from the castle's invisible windows, and faery music floating out through the air.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Three times a day I brew a bitter tea from dried dandilion roots. The last batch I left stewing for a bit too long, and could hardly choke it down. Most of the time the tea is tolerable, even pleasant. There's something comforting about the ritual of making tea, then holding a steaming cup between one's hands. I'm looking forward to spring when the clover, violets, daisies and dandilions spring up into the grassy green of my lawn.

Friday, March 6, 2009

I happened to be driving out in the toolies one fine afternoon. My eye was caught by a flash of color. I pulled over and hopped out to further investigate. I was astounded to find a bevy of gorgeously colored grasses. It seemed to me the vivid colors of the sunset had found their way into them. So very unexpected!

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

My husband and I drove from the coast home today. On our way home we stopped at the Baskett Slough. The clouds were just extraordinary. This is only one sample of the wonderful glories of tonight's skies.

Monday, March 2, 2009

In the forests of our childhood live giants of old. This ancient twisted maple has been alive for hundreds of years. Imagine the stories this tree could tell. My Sister, Clytie of Random Hearts, was the first to notice the graceful mossy heart of this grande old tree.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

When Elvis left the building, my son was devastated. It was mid-winter, not the time for kittens, but we went to the Humane Society to see who might be waiting for us. We found a small orange half-grown cat, who had been rescued by one of the workers there. The tiny kitty was so close to dying, he'd been taken home, and nursed back to health. As soon as Little Buddy saw my son, it was a one-way road. We brought the little cat home to stay.

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What an unusual cat! He loved anything he could drag around the house with his teeth. That included pieces of plastic, string, head phones, jewelry, extension cords and scarves, to name a few of the things which took his fancy.

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Here Little Buddy, who is not so very little these days, is trying to take a nap. In fact, I think he's beginning to get annoyed with the photographer!

This is Elvis DeBoomba, sitting atop a bevy of leaves. This giant Main Coon loved the Fall. Leaves twirling down through the air were endlessly fascinating to him. He would chase them, play with them, toss them into the air--and sleep on them whenever he could.

Fills My Eyes

When I see something unexpected, unusual, or beautiful, my focus suddenly sharpens and intensifies. The sensation tickles! That's when I say something "fills my eyes." It is the greatest compliment I can give.

"Sometimes I do get to places just when God's ready to have somebody click the shutter." -- Ansel Adams

Sunset

The Columbia Gorge

"Sometimes it is not the camera as much as the "thing" you chose to photograph." -- Abraham Lincoln

We must be willing to let go of the life we have planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us. -- E. M. Forster

Welcome to my World

I have always loved taking pictures. I took my first and only photography class at West Linn High. The photo lab was located in the bowels of the school near the gym's locker rooms. There we learned to manage typical dark room techniques and procedures for developing film.

Things have radically changed since those days. Today's technology no longer requires pungent trays of chemicals and a dark room.

With the invention of the digital camera, I was set free to capture the amazing, unusual and the unexpected. My camera is always by my side. I never know when, or where I will be able to capture some delicate beauty, or unexpected oddity.

Welcome to my world!

Statistically, the probability of any one of us being here is so small that you'd think the mere fact of existing would keep us all in a contented dazzlement of surprise.

--Lewis Thomas, The Lives Of A Cell

"Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass."~ Anton Chekhov

About Me

I love to photograph the forest, my garden, birds of all kinds, the river, my town, our historical home, the ocean and so much more. The stories one can find are endless.

The seasons of nature are fascinating to me. Every year, time and the seasons seem to vibrate with increasing intensity

~Beth.

A Fairytale Mind

This is a link to my favorite book reviewer. Rena Lanyon gives a well-written review from a youthful perspective.

Art from Trash

by Clytie, Queen of Hearts

Sharp Shinned Hawk

The Incredible Photography of Abraham Lincoln

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.-- Mark Twain

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Copyright Questions

My photography may not be reproduced, copied, edited, published, transmitted or uploaded in any way without my written permission (which is easy to get via email).If you have my permission and use my photography, please credit me and put a link to my blogsite. Write to me when you use my work, so I can visit.

I expect my photos will be used in a tasteful manner. If my photography is used in a manner which I deem unsuitable, I reserve the right to remove permission granted to use my photos. Should I withdraw my permission, my photos must be removed immediately.